Excavator.



No. 665,685. Patented Jan. 8, 19m.

0. HETLESAETER.

EXCAVATOR; (Application filed Kay 7. 1000.

'2 Sheets-Sheet I.

(No Model.)

m: NORRIG PETERS 00.. lmcn'o-ufmiwasnmu'ron, n. c

No. 665,685. Patented Ian. 8, I90l.

0. HETLESAETER.

EXCAVATOB.

(Applicstion filed Kay 7, 1900.) (No man.) 2 sheets-sum 2.

UNITED STATES PATENT FFICE.

OLAF HETLESAETER, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.

EXCAVATO R.

sPncIFIcA'r'IoN formingpart of Letters Patent No. 665,685, dated January8, 1901.

Application filed May 7, 1900. Serial No. 155703. Lllo model.)

To all whom, it may concern:

Be it known that I, OLAF HETLESAETER, a citizen of the United States,residing in the city of Chicago, county of Cook, and State of Illinois,have invented a new and useful Improvement in Excavators, of which thefollowing is a specification.

My invention relates to excavators, particularly steam shovels anddredges, wherein the bucket-arm is pivotally supported upon the crane,and the crane is also revoluble.

The objects of my invention are, first, to provide means whereby thecrane may be adjusted longitudinally upon the crane-support; second,toprovide means whereby the bucketarm may be adjusted longitudinally uponits support, and, third, to provide a construction whereby the beamscomposing the crane and also the beams composing the pivotally-supportedmember of the bucket-arm may be easily removed for renewal or otherpurposes. I attain these objects by the mechanism illustrated in theaccompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 is a side view of a portion ofan excavator embodying my invention, said figure showing the bucket-arm,the crane, and a portion of the structure whereon the crane is mounted.Fig. 2 is a detail view taken transversely to the crane and showing themanner in which the crane-beams are supported in the crane-pivot. Fig. 3is a detail view taken transversely to the oscillating lever of thebucket-arm and shows the manner in which the beams of said lever aresupported in the pivot-blocks. Fig. 4 is a side View of the crane andoscillatinglever, showing in full lines the said parts in one positionand in dotted lines the said parts in another position, illustrating theadj ustability of said parts. Fig. 5 is a plan view of a portion of thecrane as shown in Fig. 4. Fig. 6 is a plan view of a portion of theoscillating -1ever as shown in Fig. 4. Fig. 7 is a detail View in plan,showing the construction of the end caps employed at the extremities ofthe beams of the crane and oscillating lever. Fig. 8 is a detailsectional view taken on the line 8 8 and looking in the direction of thearrows, Fig. 4, showing one of the end caps in position upon its beam.

tion 0, (partially shown in Fig. 2,) which enters a correspondingcylindrical aperture provided in the turret a, said aperture not beingshown. Above said cylindrical portion csaid pivot has thelaterally-extending annular flange or projection d, which rests upon thetop of said turret a, thereby supporting said pivot and also forming arest or support for the crane-beams e e. Said pivot has the portions ff, which extend above said cranebeams e and terminate at their upperextremities in the bosses or lugs gg. Said portions ffform centerposts,which,in connection with the tie-rods h h,serve to brace andstrengthen the crane-beams e. Said posts f project laterally over saidbeams e, thereby forming,in conjunction with the flange d,the recessesjj, which receive said beams c and permit said beams to slidelongitudinally in said pivot. The crane-beams e e are substantiallyparallel and form the main body of the crane, said crane extending inboth directions from said pivot b.

At the extremity of each of the beams e is attached an end cap it.(Shown in detail in Figs. 7 and 8.) Each of said caps 70 is attached toits crane-beam e by means of aboltm, which encircles the beam 6 andforms a clamp for attaching saidcaps to said beams. Said caps partiallyinclose the ends of the crane-beams e and are further held in positionby means of the rods n, which extend along said beams and connect thecaps upon the opposite ends thereof. Said rods 'n are threaded at theirextremities adjacent to said caps 70 and are secured to said caps bymeans of the nuts 0 0. The rods h it, above mentioned, are also threadedat their extremities adjacent to the end caps k and extend from the lugsg upon the crane-pivot b to said end caps 10, being secured to thelatter by means of the nuts 10 p. The said end caps It are preferablyapertured to receive said rods h h, and said caps and the bosses g g ofthe post f are so constructed that considerable play is permitted tosaid rods to allow for the different positions of the latter when thecrane is adjusted to different positions. Said end caps are adapted toreceive the cross-shafts q g, which extend between the crane-beams e eand serve as distancepieces for holding the same in their properrelative positions. The said end caps 70 are thus securely held in placeWithout necessitating the cutting of apertures in the cranebeams forbolts or rivets. It is obvious from the above description that the postsff upon the crane-pivot b and the rods It it constitute the thrust andtension members, respectively, of a simple truss. As said beams e aremovable longitudinally in the crane-pivot b and as the extremities ofthe rods h are threaded, it follows that 'said crane-beams may beadjusted longitudinally by varying the positions of the nuts 19 uponsaid rods h and moving the crane-beams to the desired position in saidpivot. On one of said shafts q are mounted the pivot-blocks 'r r, whichrotate upon said shaft and support the parallel beams s s of theoscillating lever. Said blocks 1' have the approximately U-shapedrecesses t at their upper extremities, which receive the said beams s inthe manner shown in Fig. 3. A lever-post u is secured to each of saidblocks r above said beams s, the base of said post coming approximatelyflush with the upper surface of said beam, and thus confining said beamin said block, but permitting said beam to move longitudinally therein.Upon their outer lateral surfaces the blocks r carry the lugs 12 o, towhich the rods w w are attached. The lever-posts u have the bosses as a;at their upper extremities, which serve as means of attachment for thetie-rods y y. The oscillating lever of which said beams s s are theprincipal members extends in both directions from said blocks r. At eachextremity of said beams s are the end caps Z Z, which for convenience ofmanufacture are identical in construction-and purpose to the end caps 7c70, above described. Said caps Z are held in position by the bolts 2 2and also by the rods 20 wand y 3 above mentioned, said rods to and ybeing secured to said caps by means of the nuts 8 3 and 4 at,respectively. Said rods to and y are threaded at their extremities toreceive said nuts 3 and 4 and are of sufficient length to permit theadjustment longitudinally of the beams sin said blocks r. At the upperand lower extremities of the oscillating lever are the cross-shafts 5and 6, respectively, which extend between the beams s s and constitutedistance-pieces therefor, said shafts being attached to the respectiveend caps Z Z. The distance-piece 7 extends between and is fastened tothe pivot-blocks r at the opposite sides of the oscillating lever. Thedisposition of the posts 14 and rods y is such that the beams s s aretrussed, and by the use of the end caps Z Z it follows that theoscillating lever is rigidly braced and stiffened without the use ofbolt or rivet holes in said beams. The

oscillating lever above described is particularly adapted for use inconnection with a linkwork bucket-arm, an arm of this type having beendescribed by me in an application for patent filed September 7, 1899,Serial No. 729,706.

In Fig. 1 of the present drawings is shown a linkwork bucket-arm, thepart indicated by the reference-nu m eral 8 constituting a thrustsegmentpivotally supported upon the shaft 5 at the upper extremity of theoscillating lever. Said segment is adapted to receive the application ofpower for operating the bucketarm. In said Fig. 1 the bucket-handle 9 ispivotally attached to said thrust-segment 8 by means of the shaft 1(located at the rear extremity of said segment and at the upper extremityof said bucket-handle. At the lower extremity of said handle is carriedthe excavator-bucket 11, which is rigidly attached to said handle and isof the ordinary construction. The shaft 12, located, preferably, nearthe lower extremity of said handle, also is connected with the lowerextremity of the oscillating lever by means of the bucket-links 13,which extend between and are articulately attached to the shaft 6 insaid lever and also to the shaft 12 in said bucket-handle. The saidlinks 13 preferably extend-in a forward direction from said oscillatingleverthat is, in such a direction that the bucket-handle 9 traverses theline of said lever. By this con struction the bucket is projected to aconvenient position in front of the bucket-arm, and when the bucket ismoving in a forward direction taking a cut the links 13 are undercompressive strains. It is obvious that as saidoscillatinglever,thrlist-segment, buckethandle, and bucket-links arepivotally connected together said members are movable relatively to eachother and, moreover, that the distance of the bucket 11 from the shaft qis dependent upon the positions of the members of the bucket-armrelatively to each other and relatively to the crane. The distance towhich the bucket may reach in discharging is effected both by theposition of the bucket-arm in the pivot-blocks r and also by theposition of the crane in the cranepivot b.

To adjust the crane in the crane-pivot, the nutspp on the rods h h areloosened, and the beams e 6 may then be moved longitudinally to thedesired position. For example, if it is desired to shorten the effectivelength of the crane between the turretct and the shaft q, whereon thebucket-arm is mounted, the nuts p upon the rear rods y are backed OE andthe beams e are slid rearward, so as to ap proach the position of thebeams shown by the dotted lines in Fig. 4. When the desired position ofthe crane is reached, all of the nuts 19 p are tightened into positionagainst their respective end caps and the crane is once more secure uponits pivot b. It will be noticed that as the said rods It always extendfrom the center post f to the end caps 7c the crane is always trussedcompletely to the extremities thereof. Moreover, this adjustment maybemade without removing said end caps from their respective beams 6, noris it necessary to disturb the rods n. If it is desired not to have longthreaded portions on the rods 71 h, rods of special lengths may beprovided and substituted for said rods h as the positions of the cranemay require. In a similar manner the lever-beams s 3 may be adjusted inthe pivot-blocks r by loosening the nuts upon the rods to w and rods yy. If it is desired to decrease the working length of the oscillatingleverthat is, to decrease the distance between the said blocks 2' andthe shaft 6 at the lower extremity of said leverthe nuts 3 and a arebacked off by unscrewing the same along the rods to and 3 respectively,and subsequently sliding the beams s to the desired position in the saidblocks 1. When the proper position is reached, all of the said nuts 3 3and at 4 are tightened into place against their respective end caps Z Z.This last-described adjustment of the lever may be made without removingsaid end caps from said beams s, as said caps are held in positionthereon by means of the bolts 2. As the said rods 'y extend from thecenter post u'to the said end caps, the oscillating lever is alwaystrussed completely to the extremities thereof.

WVhen employed in connection with the linkwork bucket-arm, as shown inFig. 1, the upper extremity of the oscillating lever dc termines,approximately, the power leverage and the lower extremity of saidlever'the load leverage of the linked structure which constitutes thebucket-arm. Therefore by decreasing the length of the oscillating leverbelow the pivot-blocks r the force requisite to operate the bucket-armbecomes relatively less. Conversely, when the distance between theblocks 1' and the shaft 6 is increased the 'force requisite to operatethe bucket-arm becomes relatively increased.

The effects of the adjustment of the crane and of the oscillating levermay supplement each other, as the working lengths of both the crane andof the oscillating lever may be simultaneously increased orsimultaneously decreased. When the working lengths of said crane and saidoscillating lever are extended, as shown in the full lines in Fig. 4,the shaft 6 may reach to a greater distance from the turret a than ifonly one of the said parts were adjustable.

Certain features of the crane-support and crane herein shown aredescribed and claimed by me in a separate application, numbered as 1 ina series of four applications filed this day.

What I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

l. In'an excavator, parallel beams slidingly supported and adjustablewith'reference to their-points of support in the direction of theirlength, for the purpose of regulating the position of the bucket; incombination with a part for supporting said beams; and tension rodsattached at one extremity to said beams, and at the other extremity tosaid part wherein said beams are supported.

2. In an excavator, parallel beams slidingly supported and adjustablewith reference to their points of supportin the direction of theirlength, for the purpose of regulating the positionof the bucket; incombination with a part for supporting said bean1s,said part having aprojection laterally removed from said beams, and tension-rods attachedat one extremity to said beams, and at the other extremity attached tosaid projections, thereby forming a trussed structure.

3. In an excavator, a pivoted crane, the nether support of which islocated at a single point intermediate of the extremities of the crane,said crane being adjustable horizontally upon said support.

4. In an excavator, a crane consisting of a beam or beams, the nethersupport of which is located at a single point beneath said crane, saidcrane being slidingly mounted upon said support; in combination withmeans for trussing said crane.

5. In an excavator, a crane, a pivot forming the sole support of saidcrane, a frame or turret for revolubly supporting said pivot, and meansfor adjusting said crane in a horizontal direction upon said pivot.

- 6. In an excavator, the combination of beams forming the principalmembers of the crane; a crane-pivot forming the sole'nether support forsaid beams, and permitting the longitudinal adjustment of said beams;and rods connected with said crane-pivot, and also connected with saidbeams, said rods affording means whereby said beams may be, whenadjusted, held in position upon said cranepivot.

7. In -an excavator, the combination of beams forming the principalmembers of the crane; a crane-pivot wherein said beams are supported andwherein said beams may slide in the direction of their lengths; saidpivot having portions extending above said beams and affording means ofattachment for tension-rods; tension-rods connected to said extendedportion of said crane-pivot, and extending to the extremities of saidcrane; and means for adj ustably connecting said tensionrods to theextremities of said crane.

8. In an excavator, the combination of a turret; a crane-pivot revolublysupported in said turret; parallel crane-beams slidingly supported insaid turret; extensions on said pivot arising above said crane-beams andaffordin g means of attachment for tension-rods; end caps secured tosaid beams at the extremities thereof {and tension-rods connected tosaid cranepivot at the said extremities thereon, and attached to saidend caps.

9. In an excavator, a linkwork bucket-arm, one of the members whereof isan oscillating lever adjustable in the direction of the length thereof,and means for trussing said lever.

10. In an excavator, the combination of a revoluble crane and a compoundbucket-arm, the supporting member of said arm being pivotally' supportedon said crane and adjustable on said pivot in the direction of thelength of said supporting member, said supporting member beingunattached to said bucket.

11. In an excavator, a crane, blocks pivotally supported on said crane,and a linkwork bucket-arm, one of the members of said arm being composedof a beam or beams longitudinally adjustable in said blocks, incombination with means for adj ustably securing said beams in positionin said blocks.

12. In an excavator, the combination of a pivoted crane; pivot-blockssupported upon said crane; beams slidingly supported in said blocks;parts attached to said blocks and extending above said beams; saidprojecting parts forming means of attachment for tension-rods; and,tension-rods connected to said upwardly-projecting parts on saidblocks,said rods being also connected to the extremities of said beams.

13. In an excavator, the combination with a pivoted crane adjustable inthe direction of the length thereof, and an oscillating lever pivotallysupported upon said crane, of a bucket-handle extending in the generaldirection of said oscillating lever, and links connecting the adjacentextremities of said bucket-handle and oscillating lever.

14. In an excavator, the combination of a crane adjustable in thedirection of its length; a linkwork bucket-arm pivotally supported uponsaid crane, one of the members of said arm constituting an oscillatinglever, which is pivotally attached to said crane and forms the supportfor said bucket-arm, said lever being longitudinally adjustable upon itssu pport; a second member of said arm extending in the general directionof said oscillating lever; a thrust-segment connecting the upperextremity of said oscillating lever with said second member; andconnections between the lower extremities of said lever and said secondmember; and a bucket attached to said second member at the lowerextremity thereof.

15. In an excavator, the combination of a crane; a crane-pivot formingthe sole nether support for said crane and permitting the lon gitudinaladjustment of said crane; and rods connected with said crane-pivot andalso connected with said crane, said rods aifording means whereby saidcrane may be, when adjusted, held in position upon said crane-pivot.

OLAF HETLESAETER.

\Vitnesses:

HOWARD M. Cox, ARTHUR M. Cox.

